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And it cometh to pass, at the end of twenty years, that Solomon hath built the house of Jehovah, and his own house.

As to the cities that Huram hath given to Solomon, Solomon hath built them, and there he causeth the sons of Israel to dwell.

And Solomon goeth to Hamath-Zobah, and layeth hold upon it;

and he buildeth Tadmor in the wilderness, and all the cities of store that he hath built in Hamath.

And he buildeth Beth-Horon the upper, and Beth-Horon the lower -- cities of defence, with walls, two-leaved doors, and bar --

and Baalath, and all the cities of store that Solomon had, and all the cities of the chariot, and the cities of the horsemen, and all the desire of Solomon that he desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.

All the people who are left of the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, who are not of Israel --

of their sons who have been left after them in the land, whom the sons of Israel consumed not -- doth Solomon lift up a tribute unto this day.

And none of the sons of Israel hath Solomon made servants for his work, but they [are] men of war, and heads of his captains, and heads of his charioteers, and of his horsemen;

10 and these [are] heads of the officers whom king Solomon hath, two hundred and fifty who are rulers among the people.

11 And the daughter of Pharaoh hath Solomon brought up from the city of David to the house that he built for her, for he said, `My wife doth not dwell in the house of David king of Israel, for they are holy unto whom hath come the ark of Jehovah.'

12 Then hath Solomon caused to ascend burnt-offerings to Jehovah on the altar of Jehovah that he built before the porch,

13 even by the matter of a day in its day, to cause to ascend according to the command of Moses, on sabbaths, and on new moons, and on appointed seasons, three times in a year -- in the feast of unleavened things, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of booths.

14 And he establisheth, according to the ordinance of David his father, the courses of the priests over their service, and of the Levites over their charges, to praise and to minister over-against the priests, according to the matter of a day in its day, and the gatekeepers in their courses at gate and gate, for so [is] the command of David the man of God.

15 And they have not turned aside [from] the command of the king concerning the priests and the Levites, in reference to any matter, and to the treasures.

16 And all the work of Solomon is prepared till the day of the foundation of the house of Jehovah, and till its completion; perfect is the house of Jehovah.

17 Then hath Solomon gone to Ezion-Geber, and unto Elath, on the border of the sea, in the land of Edom;

18 and Huram sendeth to him, by the hand of his servants, ships and servants knowing the sea, and they go with servants of Solomon to Ophir, and take thence four hundred and fifty talents of gold, and bring in unto king Solomon.

Solomon’s Other Activities(A)

At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built the temple of the Lord and his own palace,(B) Solomon rebuilt the villages that Hiram[a] had given him, and settled Israelites in them. Solomon then went to Hamath Zobah and captured it. He also built up Tadmor in the desert and all the store cities he had built in Hamath.(C) He rebuilt Upper Beth Horon(D) and Lower Beth Horon as fortified cities, with walls and with gates and bars, as well as Baalath(E) and all his store cities, and all the cities for his chariots and for his horses[b]—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.

There were still people left from the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites(F) (these people were not Israelites). Solomon conscripted(G) the descendants of all these people remaining in the land—whom the Israelites had not destroyed—to serve as slave labor, as it is to this day. But Solomon did not make slaves of the Israelites for his work; they were his fighting men, commanders of his captains, and commanders of his chariots and charioteers. 10 They were also King Solomon’s chief officials—two hundred and fifty officials supervising the men.

11 Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter(H) up from the City of David to the palace he had built for her, for he said, “My wife must not live in the palace of David king of Israel, because the places the ark of the Lord has entered are holy.”

12 On the altar(I) of the Lord that he had built in front of the portico, Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings to the Lord, 13 according to the daily requirement(J) for offerings commanded by Moses for the Sabbaths,(K) the New Moons(L) and the three(M) annual festivals—the Festival of Unleavened Bread,(N) the Festival of Weeks(O) and the Festival of Tabernacles.(P) 14 In keeping with the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions(Q) of the priests for their duties, and the Levites(R) to lead the praise and to assist the priests according to each day’s requirement. He also appointed the gatekeepers(S) by divisions for the various gates, because this was what David the man of God(T) had ordered.(U) 15 They did not deviate from the king’s commands to the priests or to the Levites in any matter, including that of the treasuries.

16 All Solomon’s work was carried out, from the day the foundation of the temple of the Lord was laid until its completion. So the temple of the Lord was finished.

17 Then Solomon went to Ezion Geber and Elath on the coast of Edom. 18 And Hiram sent him ships commanded by his own men, sailors who knew the sea. These, with Solomon’s men, sailed to Ophir and brought back four hundred and fifty talents[c] of gold,(V) which they delivered to King Solomon.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 8:2 Hebrew Huram, a variant of Hiram; also in verse 18
  2. 2 Chronicles 8:6 Or charioteers
  3. 2 Chronicles 8:18 That is, about 17 tons or about 15 metric tons